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Purpose: Stainless-clad bimetallic steels (SCBS) are widely investigated in some extremely environmental applications areas, such as polar sailing area and tropical oil and gas platforms areas, because of their excellent anticorrosion performance and relatively lower production costs. However, the properties of SCBS, including the mechanical strength, weldability and the anticorrosion behavior, have a direct relation with the manufacturing process and can affect their practical applications. This paper aims to review the application and the properties requirements of SCBS in marine environments to promote the application of this new material in more fields. Design/methodology/approach: In this paper, the manufacturing process, welding and corrosion-resistant properties of SCBS were introduced systematically by reviewing the related literatures, and some results of the authors' research group were also introduced briefly. Findings: Different preparation methods, such as rolling composite, casting rolling composite, explosive composite, laser cladding and plasma arc cladding, as well as the process parameters, including the vacuum degree, rolling temperature, rolling reduction ratio, volume ratios of liquid to solid, explosive ratio and the heat treatment, influenced a lot on the properties of the SCBS through changing the interface microstructures. Otherwise, the variations in rolling temperature, pass, reduction and the grain size of clad steel also brought the dissimilarities of the mechanical properties, microhardness, bonding strength and toughness. Another two new processes, clad teeming method and interlayer explosive welding, deserve more attention because of their excellent microstructure control ability. The superior corrosion resistance of SCBS can alleviate the corrosion problem in the marine environment and prolong the service life of the equipment, but the phenomenon of galvanic corrosion should be noted as much as possible. The high dilution rate, welding process specifications and heat treatment can weaken the intergranular corrosion resistance in the weld area. Originality/value: This paper summarizes the application of SCBS in marine environments and provides an overview and reference for the research of stainless-clad bimetallic steel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, low‐temperature wearable strain sensors, referring to those working at sub‐zero temperatures, are attracting increasing attentions. However, the fabrication of low‐temperature strain sensors with large working ranges, high sensitivity, and good stability remains a major challenge. In this study, a novel low‐temperature wearable strain sensor is fabricated by depositing the silver nanoplates (Ag NPs)/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) composite onto a cured silicone (DS) substrate that is constructed by using a 3D printing technology. The synergistic effect of the Ag NPs with positive temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) and the CNTs with negative TCR enable the Ag NPs/CNTs/DS strain sensor's TCR value (−1.16 × 10−5 K−1) to approach zero. The Ag NPs/CNTs/DS strain sensor demonstrates a high gauge factor over a large working range (0–100%) and fast response and recovery rates. Simultaneously, the Ag NPs/CNTs/DS strain sensor displays outstanding reproducibility and long‐term stability at −40 °C as well as excellent temperature cycling resistance under cyclic temperature of −40 to 60 °C. The Ag NPs/CNTs/DS strain sensor is further validated by incorporating into a wireless sensing system for remotely monitoring various human activities at −40 °C. This work provides wearable strain sensors for monitoring human‐machine interaction under low‐temperature condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The exploration of wearable strain sensors with new characteristics and functionalities could fuel the rapid development of Internet of Things (IoT) technology for the healthcare industry. Herein, we present a flexible, waterproof, and highly sensitive strain sensor that is fabricated by integrating graphene (G), carbon black (CB), and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) into the three-dimensional (3D) framework of commercial Ni sponge via a simple, cost-effective, and scalable drop-coating method. The G/CB/Ni strain sensor demonstrates good flexibility, high sensitivity (gauge factor of 138 at 16% strain), and long-term stability. The G/CB/Ni sensor could not only precisely monitor subtle human motions such as pulse, blinking, and swallowing, but it also shows potential in testing muscle strength. A wireless sensor system that consists of the G/CB/Ni strain sensor, an STM32 controller, a ZigBee module, and a portable power source is assembled, which enables remote transmission of data collected from the sensor to the computer wirelessly. The G/CB/Ni sensor also exhibits excellent waterproofness and can be safely used to monitor human motions under humid conditions and in water. The G/CB/Ni strain sensor featuring flexibility, high sensitivity, and waterproofness has great potential for applications in healthcare management, personal rehabilitation training, and outdoor motion monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Hierarchical nanostructures with highly exposed active surfaces for high‐performance pseudocapacitors have attracted considerable attention. Herein, a one‐step growth of (Ni xCo1−x)9Se8 solid solution series in various conductive substrates as advanced electrodes for flexible, foldable supercapacitors is developed. The formation of (NixCo1−x)9Se8 solid solution is confirmed by Vegard's law. Interestingly, the as‐grown (NixCo1−x)9Se8 solid solution series spontaneously crystallized into nanodendrite arrays with hierarchical morphology and fractal feature. The optimized (Ni0.1Co0.9)9Se8 nanodendrites deliver a specific capacitance of 3762 F g−1 at a current density of 5 A g−1 and remains 94.8% of the initial capacitance after 5000 cycles, owing to the advantage from fractal feature with numerous exposed ( 01 1 ¯) surface as well as fast ion diffusion. The as‐assembled flexible (Ni0.1Co0.9)9Se8@carbon fiber cloth (CFC)//PVA/KOH//reduced graphene oxide@CFC device exhibits an ultrahigh energy density of 17.0 Wh kg−1@ 3.1 kW kg−1, outperforming recently reported pseudocapacitors based on nickel‐cobalt sulfide and selenide counterparts. This study provides rational guidance toward the design of fractal feature with superior electrochemical performances due to the significantly increased electrochemical active sites. The resulting device can be easily folded, pulled, and twisted, enabling potential applications in high‐performance wearable and gadget devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hierarchical nanostructures with highly exposed active surfaces for use in high-performance pseudocapacitors have attracted considerable attention. Herein, we developed a one-step method for the in situ growth of (NH4)2V10O25·8H2O urchin-like hierarchical structures on highly conductive nickel foam substrates for use as advanced electrodes for all-solid-state asymmetric supercapacitors. The in situ growth of (NH4)2V10O25·8H2O urchin-like hierarchical structures delivers a specific capacitance of 1530 F g−1 at a current density of 1.5 A g−1, and retains 95.1% of the initial capacitance after 10 000 cycles, owing to the advantages of the urchin-like hierarchical structure such as more active sites for electrochemical reactions, as well as a shortened diffusion length for the charge carriers due to a binder-free effect, which exceeds that of most recently reported vanadates and polyvanadates. The as-assembled all-solid-state (NH4)2V10O25·8H2O@Ni//PVA/KOH//RGO@Ni device exhibits a comparable capacity of 92.2 F g−1 at a current density of 0.4 A g−1 and excellent cycling performance through 5000 cycles. Our study provides rational guidance toward the design of novel hierarchical nanostructures of polyvanadate for solid-state supercapacitors with superior electrochemical performances in long-term cycling stability and high energy density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrinsically p-type conductivity and a wide bandgap of ≈3.6 V endow inorganic delafossite CuGaO2 with great promise for fabricating high-performance UV photodetectors. Nevertheless, CuGaO2-based optoelectronic devices hindered because the intrinsic direct transitions are symmetry forbidden in CuGaO2. This study reports a large-area synthesis of 'CuGaO2 nanoplate/ZnS microsphere' heterostructure arrays using a facile solution-based strategy associated with an oil/water interfacial self-assembly approach. It is found that a large number of ZnS microspheres with a polycrystalline structure grow on the top surface of CuGaO2 hexagonal platelets through Ostwald ripening mechanism, forming high-density p-n heterojunctions. A parabolic dependence between the size of ZnS microsphere and the growth time is confirmed in this growth. The UV light adsorption of the heterostructure CuGaO2/ZnS thin film is two times higher than that of the pristine CuGaO2 thin film. Furthermore, the as-designed 'CuGaO2 nanoplate/ZnS microsphere' heterostructure arrays exhibit enhanced photoresponse properties. This work offers a new insight into the rational design of optoelectronic devices from the synergetic effect of p-type 2D nanoplates as well as n-type nanostructures such as ZnS, ZnO, CdS, and CdO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Layered niobium phosphates have been considered very promising energy storage materials because of their high theoretical operating voltage window and the rich oxidation states of niobium. However, their development has been stymied by the phase‐controlled synthesis due to the insolubility of niobium sources except in concentrated hydrofluoric (HF) acid systems. Herein, a new avenue is opened for layered acid niobium phosphate (2NbOPO4·H3PO4·H2O) synthesis in a mild oxalic acid system. Taking advantage of this strategy, in situ growth of sub‐5 nm 2NbOPO4·H3PO4·H2O nanosheet (NPene) arrays on conductive carbon fiber cloth (CFC) substrates is achieved as self‐standing electrodes for solid‐state supercapacitors. Interestingly, the NPene@CFC electrode exhibits a typical cation (H+ or Li+)‐intercalation kinetics with a wide potential window of 0–1.0 V in aqueous electrolytes. Given the wide potential window and highly exposed active surface, the solid‐state asymmetric supercapacitors constructed from such a NPenes@CFC electrode display a high working potential of 2.0 V, energy density of 122.2 W h kg−1 at a power density of 589.7 W kg−1, cycle stability with a capacitance retention of 94.2% after 10 000 cycles, and also outstanding flexible and wearable characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In article number 1701066, Linfeng Hu, Xiaosheng Fang, and co‐workers rationally design large‐scaled CuGaO2 nanoplate/ZnS microsphere p‐n arrays through a facile low‐temperature solution strategy associated with an oil‐water interfacial self‐assembly approach. The ZnS microspheres are grown on the CuGaO2 thin‐film through an Ostwald ripening mechanism, and the as‐designed CuGaO2 nanoplate/ZnS microsphere heterostructure arrays exhibit drastically enhanced optoelectronic properties in UV‐light sensitivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]